'We are friends with the Kardashian sisters': how the Ukrainian section of Hollywood stars became their favorite photographer
'24.09.2019'
Source: Air force
She photographed Dita Von Teese, Jessica Alba and the Kardashian sisters. Her portfolio includes Pink clips, works for Adidas and Playboy, Topshop and Nike.
Photographer Sasha Samsonova was born in Uzhgorod, grew up and worked in Kiev, and five years ago she moved to the USA, where she lives and takes pictures of celebrities, tells Air force. Her nude photo of Kylie Jenner for Playboy had the effect of an exploding bomb, collecting 14 million likes on Instagram. They are the youngest billionaire of the planet, a businesswoman and an Instagram star wearing only a hat.
Los Angeles Sasha Samsonova already considers her home. She plans to live and make films here. Ukrainian calls Hollywood stars his friends. During the conversation, she receives a message from the singer Ciara, who congratulates her on the cover of the Playboy.
About work and friendship with celebrities, about attacks by hackers who want to find out their secrets, Sasha Samsonova told Ukraine in an interview with BBC News.
BBC News Ukraine: You were already a well-known photographer in Ukraine when you decided to move to the USA to start all over again. Why and how did you do this?
Sasha Samsonova: I knew from childhood that I would live in the USA, I dreamed of working in New York. I really love Ukraine, but, unfortunately, I have to be realistic and admit that Ukraine cannot give me such opportunities in the sphere in which I want to develop.
It so happened that in 2013, I flew to Italy to shoot the video of John Legend and Chrisi Teigen All of Me. I took a photo with them.
After I visited this set, seeing how work is going on there, I decided that instead of New York, I would move to Los Angeles and pursue a director’s career in parallel with the career of a photographer.
It so happened that then I started working with stars, and slowly changed direction from working on fashion photography to taking pictures with interesting people. When the main character is not a fashion, but a person in the frame, this is a completely different matter. I liked it. And I thought that in this way my photos would have more weight and the ability to convey something to people now, and not in a hundred years.
All these reasons together led to the fact that I rallied and moved. My best friend moved with me. She came to study, and I came to change my life. It was very difficult. But now I like living in Los Angeles, now it's my home, I've been here for over five years.
But the relocation process and the first year were incredibly complex. You have to give up your whole life, a place where they know and love you. And Los Angeles is so far from everything, it's like a separate world. I didn’t know anyone here. Everyone did not care that I exist, that I shoot well. Everything works differently here. Here you need to declare about yourself in some way, so that you pay attention.
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BBC News Ukraine: How did you announce yourself?
Sasha Samsonova: I managed to work with singer Teiana Taylor. Someone from acquaintances showed someone my shots. And she called me and offered to shoot. We talked well and agreed on everything. The shooting turned out very cool, it scattered on the Internet, for all resources.
After that, the Kylie Jenner team approached me and asked if I would like to work for her. Of course I did. At that moment, I didn't know what to do at all. I didn’t know anyone here, but I’m very bad with networking, I don’t know how to make acquaintances for work. Never come up to say, “Hi, I'm a photographer. Let's do something. ”
In August 2015, we shot the first photo shoot for Kylie Jenner. And this, in fact, helped me find a place in the American market.
However, no one gave a guarantee that we will work together, that she will like it and we will have more than one shoot. In fact, after shooting with Kylie, another nine months passed before my new big project. One shoot didn’t solve anything yet.
It was necessary to continue to grow, to become better. It never stops at all.
BBC News Ukraine: Do you think social networks have helped to get noticed?
Sasha Samsonova: Yes, of course. Instagram played a big role in my life. He, as it were, presented my works to these people, made them available. You can simply open the page and see. It seems to me that the Internet greatly affects the work of photographers. Because he connects celebrities, models, photographers, designers. He glues us all like glue.
BBC News Ukraine: You have famous people in your portfolio - Dita von Teese, Jessica Alba, Kardashian sisters, Pink. Tell us about the peculiarities of working with them.
Sasha Samsonova: It always seemed to me that working as a photographer is 50% being a psychologist and being able to find an approach to a person. I always put their interests first, and I always protect them, no matter who I work for - for example, my celebrity is filmed for a brand or magazine.
I will never take such a shot when they are uncomfortable. I always talk a lot during the shooting and just treat them humanly. I take into account their interests, wishes, do everything to make them comfortable on the site.
In fact, they are absolutely ordinary people. I had a much more difficult shoot with some clients in Ukraine than with Pink or Dita von Teese. They are less picky, they do not have this inadequate self-criticism, but they have a healthy acceptance of themselves, plus professionalism. All these amazing women and men are professionals in their field and it helps a lot in their work.
BBC News Ukraine: With Kylie Jenner, you did very candid photo shoots. She trusted you so much. How did it happen?
Sasha Samsonova: I have a lot of “naked” shoots, not only with Kylie, but also with other models and stars. I think she sees my photography revolve around sexuality. In women, everything is so good, no matter how you turn it, everything will revolve around something sexy, romantic and erotic. I think it all happened gradually, because we shot together so many times.
Our first shoot was very sexy, but not “nude”. But over time, she got to know me better, and I - her. We always discuss everything before filming what we like. I would never say to her: "Look, I want you to be here naked, let's take off your clothes."
The environment on my set is very soft and safe. I do not allow unnecessary people, assistants, agents. All my assistants are women.
Kylie and I have been working together for so many years and we know that nothing strange will happen during the filming. It seems to me that the thing is in mutual trust and in time.
BBC News Ukraine: How many shootings have you had with the Kardashian sisters?
Sasha Samsonova: It seems to me that there are more than 30 with Kylie alone. We shoot a lot - for different brands, for magazines. I only shot for her when she was pregnant. That is, something that no one will ever see.
BBC News Ukraine: Your shoot with Kylie for Playboy was very frank. Photos received publicity, they were reposted by many publications. Whose idea was this?
Sasha Samsonova: The idea was her husband, Travis Scott. Style - a feeling of the 70s, nature, something very soft, real, honest, sexy, not flashy. We found a location suitable for this style - this is Big Sky Movie Ranch, where many films were filmed, for example, "Django Unchained".
Before that, we talked with Playboy and they talked about how they see it. I really love the team of the American Playboy, women mainly work there, I shot for them before, we have a feeling of complete mutual understanding. We discussed that the cover should be special, it can not be just a face or an ordinary portrait.
At first we thought about choosing some of the photos with wet blue cloth for the cover, but then we decided to shoot another extra day. Without anyone. Only double. During this day, the cover for Playboy was removed - in red lingerie.
At that time, my mother flew to me from Kiev. She was the only assistant who was allowed to shoot with Kylie, the only one who could help. Because Kylie loves my mom. Mom helped with the light, with cameras.
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BBC News Ukraine: So frank shooting with celebrities requires some special security measures. How do you organize this so that someone does not spy?
Sasha Samsonova: If you conduct such a shooting in the studio, then there are no problems. Usually, if I shoot with Kylie Jenner, Kendall Jenner or Haley Bieber, then under the studio sit paparazzi and wait. After the release, they will take a few photos and that's all.
But if you shoot at locations, it’s difficult. We had extreme cases when we shot with Kendall Jenner and Kylie Jenner in a campaign for Topshop. These were swimwear, and you can’t get them to the beach in Los Angeles. Therefore, we rented a house on a hilltop in Malibu so that there were no other houses nearby and no one spied. We specially built a podium with sand. That is, we had sand and sky. Not the beach, of course, but they were safe.
We have strict rules on the set. No one ever removes any backstages on the site, only if it's their phones.
BBC News Ukraine: You talked about trust during filming. Can you say that one of these stars is now your friend?
Sasha Samsonova: It seems to me that about Kendall Jenner and Kylie Jenner, I can definitely say that we are friends and we have friendly relations. I like to shoot with many people. For example, the singer Tayana Taylor - I love her to infinity. When I was filming her pregnant in Cleveland, I stayed at their house with her husband, we cooked dinner together, sewed a wig for her, talked a lot. I love to get close to the people I shoot with, I love watching them, it helps me understand what I want from shooting.
BBC News Ukraine: How has working with celebrities affected your life?
Sasha Samsonova: This work means a huge responsibility. And this responsibility is very nervous. It is necessary to make them, stars, feel safe. To ensure that their photos do not get anywhere, be responsible for each frame.
Each time we somehow agree on how to forward these photos. They tried to hack me many times to gain access to them. Sometimes letters are also sent to me, supposedly on behalf of the artist with a request to send photos from our shootings. And this turns out to be fake accounts.
Working with such stars is very delicate, and a mistake is unacceptable here.
BBC News Ukraine: How did you shoot the Pink video entitled Wild Hearts Can not Be Broken? It was a very sensual black and white work, which Pink devoted to all the children of the Earth. How did you do it, whose idea was it?
Sasha Samsonova: When representatives of Pink turned to me, they already knew that they wanted a simple video and gave me directions. I listened to the song, came up with a concept with a fabric behind it, with light. Pink, when she saw how we all exhibited, she burst into tears.
This is not a song for pop music video, or for dancing. This is a song that should evoke feelings. It’s very dangerous to make clips of such music. I don’t want to jeopardize the idea of this music with the way you make visual.
So how minimal the song is, and black and white, and Pink in a simple outfit was all that was needed for the video. She sang live while we were filming. It was amazing just hearing her voice and seeing her face. Everything was built around her. This left us no chance to fail the clip.
BBC News Ukraine: Do you still have this excitement - is there a star in front of me? When you first see Pink, or Jessica Alba, how does your first contact happen, what do you tell them?
Sasha Samsonova: Probably no worries. Because a film set is the most comfortable place on the planet for me. I come and say: “Hi, I am Sasha, I will take pictures, nice to meet you”.
First of all, I tell you what I want to get during the shooting, what are my ideas, vision. While, for example, they are doing makeup, we just chat about their life and career, about me.
We had an interesting conversation with Jessica Alba - we talked about James Cameron, who directed The Terminator, Avatar, with whom she worked. And he is my favorite director.
And the way she talks about him was very interesting to listen to. She is such a balanced and balanced person. He approaches his work as a business woman, and not as a typical actress. It was cool and inspiring to work with her.
So is singer Ciara. Before I started shooting, I just went to Seattle to meet her. She put me her music, we had a nice conversation. I showed her my photos. Such things are very important. Because we can understand each other better.
BBC News Ukraine: What are you planning to do next, whom to shoot? Do not want to return to Ukraine?
Sasha Samsonova: No, my house is here, although I miss Ukraine. Now I am working on a photo book. She will only be about women, about how I see them. There will be good photos, all about female beauty and strength.
I’m not renting clips now. This month I plan to make two or three short films. In addition, I plan to shoot a full-length film in February, we are now developing a script.
My next step is definitely a movie, this is my dream. I will never give up a photo, but I want to shoot a full-length (film - Ed.), For me it is mega-important.
